Institutional investors in the United States and Australia have called for governance changes at News Corporation in the wake of the scandal surrounding allegations of phone hacking by News of the World journalists.
Bonds buoy funds globally
New Zealand pension funds were the best performing in the OECD last year, with an average of 10.3 per cent, followed by Chile, Finland, Canada and Poland, with 2.7 per cent the average across all countries.
Investors must lobby with one voice, but not if it’s plagiarised
Almost identical letters by two separate investor groups in the US have urged President Obama to act now to avoid the US debt downgrade. Institutional investors should get involved in this crisis, but the lack of collaboration highlights how far the institutional investor community has to go if it is going to be an effective lobby movement.
BlackRock sees reward in risk of fund of funds
While high fees and a lack of transparency have left many investors cool towards fund of hedge funds, BlackRock risk management expert Mark Everitt says the asset class is staging a comeback.
Human rights custom index explained
MSCI has constructed a new index, based on client-specified customised ESG screening criteria, which aims to exclude companies directly implicated in certain serious human rights violations. This paper outlines the index methodology.
CIC weighs into alternatives
The China Investment Corporation deployed nearly 30 per cent of its cash, or $35.7 billion, in 2010, mostly into private equity, real estate, infrastructure and other direct investments with its alternatives allocation increasing from 6 to 21 per cent in the year.
